The New Europe Center kindly invites you to join the 3rd EU Accession Exchange Forum, which is the main discussion platform that brings together policy makers, experts, opinion leaders, media representatives, and officials from both EU candidate countries and EU member states. Its primary objective is to address the most pressing issues related to the accession process.

The event will be held on September 19 and will be streamlined online on the Facebook page and Youtube channel of the New Europe Center.

Working language: English.

Start: 9:30 am (UTC+3).

Final agenda of the event will be available closer to the date.

3rd EU Accession Exchange Forum is an international gathering of practitioners and experts on the issues related to the European integration of the candidate countries. It aims to provide a platform and encourage cross- country and multi-stakeholder networking to take stock of the accession process, good practices, and lessons learned. It is also meant to discuss new ideas and explore the opportunities in the relations between the European Union and Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, and the Western Balkan countries.

The discussion panels will be devoted to the following issues:

• EU’s geopolitical enlargement is back. Can it deliver?
• Taking stock of the reforms in the candidate countries and the EU: What now? What next?
• Spoilers of the EU integration: how to safeguard the EU accession process from Russia’s interference?
• How much does it cost? The price of the enlargement and the impact on the EU budget
• Gearing up for a Defence Union: can the EU stand alone as a security provider for its current and future members?

Among the speakers:

Olga Stefanishyna, Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine – Minister of Justice of Ukraine, Ihor Zhovkva, Deputy Head of the President’s Office, Diplomatic adviser to the President of Ukraine, Katarina Mathernova, EU Ambassador to Ukraine, Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze, Chair of the Committee on Ukraine’s Integration into the EU of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, Jovana Marovic, Former Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of European Affairs of Montenegro, Bojan Marichijk, Former Deputy Prime Minister for European Affairs of the Republic of North Macedonia

The EU Accession Exchange Forum is organized by the New Europe Center in partnership with the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister of European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine, the International Renaissance Foundation, the European Council on Foreign Relations, the Institute for European Policies and Reforms, the Center for Liberal Modernity and the European Pravda. The EU Accession Exchange Forum is taking place with EU support, within the EU-funded “European Renaissance of Ukraine” project implemented by the International Renaissance Foundation.